MAYVILLE – The Chautauqua County Legislature will consider two labor contracts with members of the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office when it meets Wednesday in Mayville.
The tentative labor contracts with sheriff’s deputies and lieutenants was reviewed last week in committee and was approved by both public safety and audit and control.
The contract between the county and the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association would take effect Jan. 1 and expire Dec. 31, 2021. The agreement includes no wage increase in 2017; a 1.5 percent increase in 2018 and 2019; and a 2 percent increase in 2020 and 2021. It also places all active members into a high-deductible health plan while the county would provide a 20-year retirement plan.
Details within a tentative five-year contract with lieutenants are similar to that of the deputies’ agreement, besides a slight difference in the pay increase schedule.
Both unions have ratified their tentative labor agreements.
IMPACT ON JPD/SHERIFF’S OFFICE CONSOLIDATION PLAN
It’s not known what impact, if any, the proposed contract would have on a proposed consolidation of the Jamestown Police Department with the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s office. That plan is still being finalized and there’s no guarantee it would be accepted by the city council or the county legislature. The basic premise of the proposed consolidation is to have the Sheriff’s office provide deputies to work in Jamestown, replacing Jamestown Police officers as they retire or leave the force. The transition would result in a savings for the city at no additional cost to the county.
Consultants with the Center for Governmental Research (CGR) consulting firm out of Rochester have been hired to look into the feasibility of such a plan, with funding provided by the state.
The legislature will act on the two contracts when it meets Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. in the Chautauqua County legislative chambers in Mayville.
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